Choose your region

Two wild bulls were drinking water at the stockade water troughs as the orphans settled for their lucerne this morning. 

Shortly later, Musiara strolled down towards the water trough to try and find out who were these two gentlemen were, who weren’t interested in joining the orphans in feeding on lucerne. Musiara, in a slow measured walk, tried to squeeze himself in between the two wild bulls as he wasn’t quite sure how the bulls might react to him. The bulls didn't bother about the small boy joining them in drinking water though and just allowed him to carry on. We are sure if he had more brazenly approached them then their reaction might not have been quite so docile, but because Musiara was polite, they just allowed him to continue. Later, Musiara finished drinking water with the wild bulls and walked off to join Ambo and Dololo, and brag to them how brave he was to stand at the same water trough with grownups without any problem. 

Mutara’s herd was at the stockades as well this morning, and Nabulu joined Mutara and Jotto to drink some water. Nabulu seemed to be turning to ask Mutara some questions from time to time, and it seemed for the most part as if Mutara were responding to her. 

Galana and her herd showed up at the stockades shortly after the orphans had gone out to browse.

At mud bath time, Nabulu led the way for the noon bottle feed. It was chilly and the orphans opted for a soil bath instead of going into the waterhole for a swim. In the afternoon, Rapa engaged Mapia in a strength testing exercise that ended when Mapia surrendered. Later, Kauro played with Mundusi and after winning, he moved to tackle Enkikwe. Their game ended in a draw.

As usual, Mutara and her herd were present at lucerne feeding venue this morning. 

A wild bull was busy drinking water at the stockade water trough. Shortly later, some of the dependent boys led by Rapa walked down to the water trough to meet up with the wild bull. The wild elephant wasn’t unfriendly to Rapa, Mundusi, Wanjala and Galla and allowed them to share water with him. The inquisitive Rapa broke the silence by starting the conversation with the wild bull. The others joined in with their trunks pointed at the wild bull too. After sometime, the wild bull left after being satisfied that he had given the best answers to the inquisitive boys. Rapa, Mundusi, Wanjala and Galla escorted the wild bull a short distance then bid him farewell. 

Out in the bush, Dololo continued to enjoy his special treatment from his elder adopted sisters in Mutara’s herd. By noon the sun had finally started to peak out from behind the clouds, and a few orphans decided to go into the mud bath to enjoy the water for a bit. Kamok joined two wild bulls who were drinking from the water troughs. 

This afternoon, a wild herd consisting of a mother and her three calves showed up at the lucerne feeding area as if requesting for lucerne, since they have been used to finding it there whenever they are around. We noticed that not only the mother was pregnant but her first born daughter too, which was a wonderful sight. The Keepers gave the elephants some lucerne and the mother was clearly happy. Mutara and her herd just arrived in time to get to feed with the wild herd too. Later, Naseku, Oltaiyoni, Roi and Tusuja totally refused to get into their stockade and instead they joined the wild herd feeding on lucerne. They later went to knock at the gate for someone to let them in for the night and one of the Keepers dutifully obliged them. 

Mutara and her team of kidnappers spent the night just outside the stockades and joined the orphans when they were let out this morning. Sities, Suguta, Kainuk and Turkwel, the most notorious kidnappers, welcomed Dololo out with excitement and walked him over to the lucerne feeding area. They seemed to be deliberating how they might abscond with their favourite little boy today, as it has been some time since they tried. The Keepers didn't see it coming as Mutara and her herd have been behaving so well recently, only escorting the older orphans in Class Five who are exploring their independence at the moment. 

Two wild bulls then showed up. One of them joined the orphans to feed on lucerne while the other one remained at the water trough drinking water. Mundusi joined the wild bull at the water trough and tried to communicate with him but was a bit scared due to his huge size. 

The morning carried on without incident and Mutara and her herd merely followed the dependent orphans as they browsed, but they picked their moment later at the mud bath when the Keepers were distracted with the milk feed and having their own lunch. Mutara’s herd watched the Keepers’ movements to pick their moment and flee with Dololo in a quiet manner without raising any suspicion. The Keepers soon realized something was amiss however as they couldn't understand why Mutara’s herd didn't stay for longer at the mud bath, and were convinced that something fishy was going on. They quickly did a head count of the milk dependent orphans and indeed Dololo was missing. After a quick search Dololo was located heading south with Mutara’s herd, gaily following behind his favourite girls. As the Keepers caught up to the group the kidnappers protested and rumbled their displeasure at having been found with their baby! Dololo was lead back to the dependent herd with Mutara and the others sheepishly following along behind.

The afternoon was quiet and in the evening seventy wild elephants reported for water. It's really getting quite dry now and more and more elephants are showing up each day in search of water. This will continue up to October/November time, when we expect our next rainy season. It feels like a long time ahead as we are only just at the beginning of the dry season still, and we know our water bowsers will be kept busy these next few months. 

The orphans woke up in a jovial mood this morning and happily guzzled down their milk bottles. Tusuja came out of his night stockade and walked down to the water troughs where he joined a wild bull that was drinking water, and engaged him in a lengthy conversation. Shortly later the ex-orphans in Galana’s herd showed up led up by the babies Lapa and Lili. Esampu and Mteto welcomed the babies with trumpets and rumbles. Sities forgot that she had Dololo to care of and instead joined the queue of following little Lapa around! 

When the lucerne was finished, the dependent orphans headed east while the ex-orphans headed south. 

At mud bath time, the sun was shining and hot. The orphans walked into the water of their own accord without even being directed there by the Keepers today. They were all too happy to enjoy a swim after all the cold weather, and even Kauro got into the water willingly. Twenty five wild bulls were present at the mud bath including Dad who looked very serene and calm. Also noticeable were four new wild bulls who had not visited the mud bath before. 

Later the orphans came out of the water and had a soil bath to dry off. Namalok accidentally stood on Ambo’s trunk which made him yell out but Namalok soon moved away as it was only an accident. Sapalan came over to check on Ambo and he was fine. He stood up and dusted himself off and followed the others back out into the bush to continue browsing. Mutara and her herd left with the Class Five members (Barsilinga, Tusuja, Siangiki, Olsekki, Oltaiyoni, Roi, Kamok, Naseku, Rapa and Enkikwe) and brought them back later in the evening. Sixty wild elephants reported for water at the stockade water troughs this evening, including two wild breeding herds with their young ones.

Shortly after the dependent orphans settled for their lucerne breakfast this morning, Lualeni and her baby Lulu accompanied by Lemoyian, Garzi and Bomani arrived and joined in too. When Karisa was through, he decided to lead the way out to browse, closely followed by Wanjala. On the way, Kauro, Kuishi, Jotto and Musiara came across some rocks that they used to scratch their bellies on. Dololo went for a second day without his escorts from Mutara’s herd and we’re not sure where Mutara, Sities, Turkwel, Suguta, Kainuk and Kithaka might have gone for now. Perhaps they have joined up with some of the other ex-orphans like those in Galana’s herd because of the delightful little babies in that group. 

Out in the bush, Kauro came across some guinea fowls and he ran at them to make them fly up in the air out of his way. The guinea fowls flew away leaving Kauro happy with the result of his game. He ambled along swinging his head and trunk in satisfaction. Pare and Mundusi decided to have a warm up exercise through a pushing game, but their game didn't last for long as Oltaiyoni intervened by pushing the two boys out of her way. 

In the absence of Mutara’s herd, Roi volunteered to look after Dololo and teamed up to browse with him throughout the morning, which Dololo seemed to like. Jotto engaged Galla in a pushing game but was disrupted by Siangiki who saw it as a waste of time as it is drying out and she felt the two boys ought to be busy feeding instead of playing. Karisa and Mteto decided to share food from the same shrub, plucking the green leaves with their trunks, while Kamok teamed up with Enkikwe to kick grass at the roots with their feet and pull the clumps up using their trunks. Lemoyian seemed to have a disagreement with Oltaiyoni about how to share a branch that had fallen on the ground. Oltaiyoni decided to surrender and let Lemoyian have it. 

Just before it was time to head to the mud bath for the noon milk feed, Kauro decided to leave the group early and head there to wait for the milk vehicle. Kauro has a funny habit of picking up sticks and walking along with them, and today was no exception as he was stood standing there holding one of his sticks waiting for his milk bottles. 

There were several wild bulls at the mud bath today one of them joined the orphans for a soil bath, almost acting as a supervisor making sure that the orphans made sure to have their dust bath properly. 

In the afternoon, Lemoyian, Garzi and Bomani snatched Nabulu, Sattao, Malkia and Ambo and set off with them to the stockade compound. They had spent the entire morning with the dependent orphans, and now felt the need to go back to the stockades to see if they could find any lucerne there to enjoy! To succeed in their mission, the three boys evidently saw it wise to recruit a few dependent orphans to accompany them. To their credit, their plan worked! For as soon as the Keepers spotted the group they immediately put out some lucerne for them to enjoy and keep them there as they radioed to the other Keepers in the bush to come and retrieve this break-away group. 

In the evening, Kenze, Taita and Tomboi were among several wild bulls that reported for water at the stockade compound.

The orphans awoke in a jovial mood today. They had their bottles and went to feed on the lucerne supplements. They have enjoyed the last few days without being interrupted by any ex-orphans or wild elephants as they have their lucerne in peace.

It is becoming very dry out in the bush and all the orphans are searching and jostling for enough browse to eat. The orphans always know the time and just before their noon milk feed they started to walk towards the mud bath area where they get their bottles. Nabulu led the orphans to the mud bath with her friend Malkia.

Some of the orphans decided to go into the mud bath after having their bottles. Sana Sana, Naseku, Dololo, Musiara, Sattao, Enkikwe, Esampu, Mteto, Maramoja, Ambo, Rapa, Jotto, Namalok and Sapalan all went in the water. It wasn’t because it was very hot but just that they felt like playing! There was one wild bull also playing in the water, and a group of wild bulls standing around the water trough drinking. Enkikwe, Esampu, Mteto, Musiara and Maramoja were the most playful today. When they were done in the mud bath they walked to the piles of loose soil to dry off. 

This afternoon the orphans all looked tired and they all concentrated on browsing. None of them were very active or playful, and just before 5pm they all returned home for their milk and to go to bed.

This evening a wild elephant herd visited the compound with some babies. Some ex-orphans from Lualeni's herd also came, along with Ishanga who was treated yesterday. She looks very strong and the wound is healing nicely. They all came to drink water and later they walked back out to the bush. Barsilinga’s group of the Class Five orphans who separated from the other Ithumba babies earlier in the day also arrived, and they were shut into their stockade for the night.

A buffalo came in to drink water with the orphans this morning, and shared the trough alongside Siangiki, Kamok and Barsilinga. There were a lot of guinea fowl birds around who came to drink water too, and later a group of wild elephant bulls arrived for some water while the babies were still feeding on lucerne. Sapalan started playing with Galla while Enkikwe was playing with Oltaiyoni. Karisa and Mundusi also were busy playing their own wrestling game, before eventually they all walked out to browse for the day. 

While they were browsing, Garzi and Orwa came to greet the dependent babies. Malkia was enjoying rolling on the ground and dusting herself.

Later on at the mud bath there were some wild bulls enjoying the fresh water from the water trough and wallowing in the mud bath to cool down. Our orphans had their milk bottles and then some join the wild bulls to wallow, but they swam in their own area and left the wild bulls to their own corner of the mud bath. Dololo had fun climbing on Jotto while they were in the water. Esampu and Ndiwa were having their own conversation while in the mud bath too. When they came out of the mud bath Mundusi, Kauro and Jotto had a lot of fun rolling around on the piles of loose soil. 

While the orphans browsed in the afternoon, Musiara enjoyed being looked after by Maramoja. Pare stopped to scratch his neck and trunk on a rock. Karisa and Rapa escorted each other when it was time to return home to the stockades in the evening. 

This evening a big group of wild bulls came to drink water from the stockade compound. Orwa, Garzi and Bomani came to join them and later they all walked out into the night together. 

It was a busy morning today as we had a big group of wild elephants visiting the stockade water trough. The orphans had their milk bottles and then came out of their stockades to begin their day. They almost couldn’t find any space, the Ithumba stockade compound was so full of elephants! It was so full some of the orphans decided to walk straight out to the bush without having any lucerne, although the Keepers tried their best to convince them to stay and have some. Ex-orphans Ishanga, Sunyei, Galana, Loijuk, Lualeni and Lenana with their wild born babies were among the wild elephants too. Ishanga seems fine and is improving every time we see her. The veterinarian did a wonderful job. Before Esampu left for the bush, she decided to do some morning exercises by kneeling down and pushing her head on the ground, and generally just messing around! Jotto stayed behind as well stretching his legs and they later they walked out to the bush together.

Mapia was browsing together with Galla before Galla decided to join his friends in Barsilinga’s herd, who wanted to go their own direction as usual. They walked away from the dependent orphans just before mud bath time. Malima was busy playing with a stick for a short while, and then she decided to chew on it as she walked along. 

Barsilinga’s herd in Class Five met up with the other orphans at the mud bath again. Some of Mutara's herd also appeared today. Suguta, Sities, Kainuk, Bomani and Orwa all decided to visit the mud bath, and they started wallowing in the water hole with pleasure. Slowly, once they were done visiting the mud bath and had finished with all the various activities, the orphans made their way back out to the bush, leaving Mutara's herd behind together with Barsilinga's group.

Malima browsed together with Mundusi while Dololo was busy play fighting with Pare. The rest of the herd were concentrating on browsing and filling their tummies, and later Nabulu and Dololo led the herd back home in the evening.

It was a quiet morning today. The orphans settled for their morning lucerne without any other elephant visitors. Kauro picked up a small bale of lucerne grass and moved away from his friends to enjoy it on his own. Kauro understands very well that because he is missing the tip of his trunk, he can’t feed as fast as his friends, and so if he is to enjoy his breakfast in peace it is best to move away from them. Wanjala, Mundusi, Galla and Rapa spotted a lone buffalo coming for water, and so, with their ears wide open, they slowly walked towards the buffalo. The buffalo was in no mood of a confrontation with these young elephants, and so walked away to come back for water a bit later. The young elephant bulls seemed pretty pleased with themselves at having told the buffalo what to do! 

On the way out to the bush, the orphans met with ex-orphan Tomboi, but Tomboi didn’t stop to socialize with anyone. He seemed thirsty and his goal was getting to the stockade water trough. Pare, Tusuja, Dololo and Enkikwe tried to wave at Tomboi with their trunks up but Tomboi walked past without saluting them today. 

Pare and Karisa later had a small conflict over a shrub they both wanted, which turned into a fight, but it didn’t last for long as Pare decided to surrender. Maramoja and Musiara found a suitable rock that they both used to scratch on. Later in the morning the orphans were joined by ex-orphans Kalama, Melia, Chemi Chemi, Garzi who were also with a wild elephant. They decided to browse with the orphans for a little while. The wild elephant was quite shy, but friendly, and didn’t mind the orphans and their human Keepers.

At mud bath time only two wild bulls showed up while the orphans were there. Jotto and Mapia had a strength testing exercise while Maramoja picked up a stick and used it to scratch in between her front legs. The orphans had a quiet afternoon with Barsilinga, Tusuja, Naseku, Oltaiyoni, Kamok, Roi, Olsekki and Siangiki choosing to part ways with the rest of the group, only to show up later in the evening at the stockades again. 

The orphans were joined by some ex-orphans in the morning. Loijuk, Kibo, baby Lili, Ishanga, Tumaren, Chemi Chemi, Orwa, Bomani, Kilabasi, Kanjoro, and Mutara’s herd too, joined the dependent orphans for the morning lucerne feed. About an hour later, the ex-orphans parted ways with the youngsters. Barsilinga, Oltaiyoni, Olsekki, Kamok, Siangiki, Tusuja, Roi and Naseku left with the ex-orphans. 

It was a quiet morning for all the orphans as they concentrated on browsing without any major distractions. At mud bath time, forty wild elephant bulls, led by ‘Dad’ who had skipped visiting the mud bath the previous day, showed up and joined the dependent orphans as they arrived there for their noon milk feed. The weather was chilly and none of the orphans dared to step into the mud bathing water. In the afternoon, the orphans settled to browse in the Kanziku area until five o'clock in the evening when Nabulu led the first group back to the stockades for the night. Musiara, Sattao and Dololo were the first into their room with Nabulu.